Titans Fall Short, But Send A Message

Sep 16, 2013 11:00 AM EST

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In a game that wasn’t for the faint of heart, the Titans lost a heartbreaker in Houston to the Texans 30-24 in overtime. This game had all the reasons why the NFL has become the Goliath of the sports world. From a 99-yard drive and a crucial safety, to icing the kicker twice just to watch a rookie wide receiver break your heart . The film Moneyball said it about baseball and I’ll say it about football “How can you not be romantic about football?”

From the Titan side of this game its a tough pill to swallow, but you have to be feeling good at least a bit. You hung for a game and more with a division rival who has owned you as of late and is looked as the cream of the crop in the AFC. You held arguably the best running back in the league in Arian Foster to 79 yards rushing and intercepted Matt Schaub twice. Hell you even had a 99-yard drive to put you ahead 17-16 on the road, but you couldn’t close the gate.

It hurts and it will hurt until you play the Texans again, but optimism has to be there. Gregg Williams fingerprints are all over this defense and it showed Sunday. The Titans had constant pressure on Schaub and smothered Foster and Ben Tate, other than Tate’s opening 60-yard rush. I really like what the Titan’s have built on defense and really look forward to what this team can do with more time to gel and practice. Big things are sure to come in the future on this side of the ball.

Now to the mess that was the offense. Chris Johnson showed flashes early and often, but there is only so much he can do when the Texans stacked the box due to lack of fear of Jake Locker. Kendall Wright and Nate Washington were very good for the most part, but Kenny Britt has done nothing to earn an extension. Collin Mooney has all the makings of a sleeper stud at fullback and Delanie Walker looks the part of a utility hybrid player at tight end. Then there is the elephant in the room, Jake Locker. He was great at times, but more often there was the sense that the Titans literally could not attempt to pass for fear of a game ending mistake. You just cannot win in this league without trusting the guy taking snaps. I will go into Locker more later in the week, but for now we have seen him in two games and he has be subpar to say the least.

The Titans should have their heads up high after this gut wrenching defeat and should look to next few weeks where they host the Chargers and Jets. The season is young and the Titans are 1-1, but optimism is in the air and it should be.